After four months of renovations, in an almost unnoticed manner, Friedenau's Lula Deli Delux has opened up a second location. After having sampled through their selection of homemade bread, I am fairly certain that this new subsidiary will become a big talking point beyond its neighborhood.

I tried it all - despite my otherwise gluten free diet. Because after Sarah Sever, mother of two, chef, baker and Lula's creative head, told me all about the preparing at Lula's own bakery, I had to go for the self-experiment.

Letting the dough prove and ripen for 48 hours apparently makes it a lot more wholesome. The looks, the texture – perfect. The taste? From the Levain, a traditional French country bread to the to walnut bread, a walnut bread and a Mediterranean country bread with tomato and olives to the rolls everything simply tastes heavenly. The country bread is crunchy on the outside, light and fluffy on the inside. The kind of goodness I have so far only tasted at Sironi's of Markthalle Neun.

The display is filled with even more delectables: raised pastries, French tarts and coffee cakes as well as thoroughly opulent sandwiches that look at least as good as those by TTCCH in Mitte. On the side you'll get fresh eggs from Waldgarten in Nienwalde, homemade jam and other hand-selected specialties.

And that still wasn't it: Sarah Sever has created a sourdough-based pizza dough used for their daily pizza offer. Beforing going off into the oven, this dough sits and ripens for at least 24 hours. Parts of the 'Lievito Madre' dough are two years old and have developed 'wild' yeasts that make for very distinct flavor nuances.

Garnishes and toppings of the crusty Italian sourdough pizza vary creatively and can go as far as arugula with hummus. But there are salads, soups and other daily dishes on the menu, too! Among them many classics from the original Hedwigstraße location – with the prominent breakfast menu leading the way.

Both kitchens prove to be working with the best ingredients, using them to come up with new, authentic cuisine while refraining from the use of flavor enhancers or any kind of convenience products. If the quality they require is not available on the market, they'd rather make it from scratch themselves. Just like Lula's burger buns.

'Baking is my way of meditating', says Sarah Sever, and I fully believe her. Business could not be done with more passion than that.